Instructional Resources for Library Instructors: Optimize Your LibGuides

Fundamental principles of design applied to LibGuides: 

Emphasis: 

Essential Question: What is the first piece of information my audience needs to know? 

Balance  & Alignment:

Essential Questions: How is your content distributed across each page? How does its positioning influence how the viewer will navigate the information? 

Contrast: 

Essential Question: How do you create space and distinctions between the various elements on your page?

Repetition:

Essential Questions: Do you have a maximum of two font types? How have you used font size, font type, size, and color consistently across the pages of your guide? 

Proportion:

Essential Questions: How have you grouped related information on each page? How have you sized these different elements to encourage sequential navigation on each page? 

Movement:

Essential Question: How do you intend the reader to navigate through your entire guide? How do you intend for your reader to navigate through each page? 

Whitespace: 

Essential Question: How are you incorporating negative space around the most important elements in your guide?

Blog: The 7 Principles of Design by Meg Reid 

• Consider your users
  • When designing a LibGuide, think about what our users need to do and how your guide can help them do that.
• Make sure content is up to date
  • A lot of maintenance goes into ensuring your Libguide's content is reliable and up to date.
• Make information easy to find
  • Use short, descriptive titles
  • F-shaped Pattern for Reading Web Content: https://www.nngroup.com/articles/f-shaped-pattern-reading-web-content/
  • Use tags to create keywords so that your guide is easier to locate
  • Help users navigate: https://webguide.ucsb.edu/web-accessibility/
  • Use friendly URLs: https://webguide.ucsb.edu/urls/
• Be organized and concise
  • ​View CUNY's Best Practices guide, which includes sample guides and a best practices slideshow: http://guides.cuny.edu/c.php?g=202985&p=1397474
• Plan for the future
  •  Be selective about what you choose to create and be intentional in creating content that can be updated as easily as possible.

Your LibGuides should be organized with your user in mind. How might you be able to use your LibGuides differently to facilitate remote instruction?

• Your LibGuide can be integrated into a Canvas class as a resource. Please refer to Library Services in Canvas for more information. 
• LibGuides can be used effectively to organize resources or link to additional relevant content, including trial databases and online collections.
• Think about the learning outcomes you have for your instruction sessions, and how your LibGuide can support those outcomes.
• Consider how your LibGuide may fit into your lesson plan. It may be more useful for your guide to focus on assignment support, or on a clear user-task that complements your instruction session.

Making Accessible Word Documents

• Include alternative text with images and tables
• Use built-in headings and styles
• Use hyperlink text, don't just include the link

Note: If you are using Word, Powerpoint or Excel, there is a built in accessibility checker you can use. 

Making Accessible PowerPoints

• Describe any images using alt text. Recommendations are descriptive text should be limited to 120 characters. Imagine describing this image to someone over the phone (Michigan State University Resource)
• Use a table of contents and headers in your slides (Michigan State University Resource)
• Use contrasting background and text colors